A Philosophical Historical Novel about Evil: The Kindly Ones by Jonathan Littell

Last updated on: June 29, 2014 at 2:44 pm by Roger E. Olson

A Philosophical Historical Novel about Evil: The Kindly Ones by Jonathan Littell 2014-06-29T14:44:08-05:00 Roger E. Olson

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

A Philosophical Historical Novel about Evil: The Kindly Ones by Jonathan Littell

I am usually reading one historical novel and listening to another one on my ipod. I like ones that include philosophical and theological themes. But they are somewhat rare. And I like to read/listen to books about World War 2 and the Holocaust (and their aftermath). I suppose that’s because those 20th century events especially raise philosophical and theological questions.

Recently I stumbled quite by accident on an outstanding historical novel about WW2 and the Holocaust. It’s very long—something else I like in a book if it’s good. I like epics. One thing especially novel about The Kindly Ones: A Novel by Jonathan Littell (Random House, 2010) is that it’s written from the perspective of a German SS officer directly involved in the mass killings of Jews, Gypsies and other “undesirables” by Germans (and others) during WW2. Most novels (and movies) about the Holocaust are written from the perspective of victims. In The Kindly Ones Littell imagines what must have been going through the mind of a German SS officer organizing and leading special units of the SS in Poland and the Ukraine during Germany’s invasions of those countries in 1939 and beyond. I’ve often wondered about that. What would a highly educated, “civilized” German officer involved in that series of massacres of totally innocent men, women and children have thought about it? How would he have justified it? What kind of impact would it have had on him? What would have prepared him to do it? What would he have thought about it years later assuming he was not executed during the war crimes trials? Littell offers one set of answers.

Littell’s protagonist is Maximilian Aue, a relatively young, highly educated, German SS officer directly involved in organizing and leading special action troops in, for example, the Ukraine in 1941. (He was also involved in the invasion of Poland earlier.) At the beginning of the novel Aue is old and writing his memoirs—for himself and not for others. But we get to read it. (I haven’t gotten to any explanation yet of how the autobiography survived or was suppose to have gotten into others’ hands.) Aue’s interest in writing about his life is to work it all out for himself, to understand himself and what he did.

The Introduction (“Toccata”) is worth the price of the book. It consists of Aue’s philosophical reflections on why the war waged by Germany, including the Holocaust and mass killings of innocent civilians, was justified. In the end, it wasn’t, but that’s only because Germany lost. But Aue is not a crude skeptic or cynical person; he’s highly educated philosophically and knows exactly what is what in the absence of any absolute authority transcending humanity. Germany turned out to be wrong because it lost. But while it was winning, it was right even if much of what units like his did was cruel and barbaric.

In the Introduction Aue speaks to readers as if he is trying to convince them of something. He argues that the whole idea of “crimes against humanity” is something of a farce. After all, as he carefully explains, everyone was involved, not just those put on trial after the war. Claims by war criminals that they were “just following orders” were rejected out of hand. And yet, Aue claims, that’s exactly what they were doing. And everyone from the driver of the civilian train that transported Jews to Auschwitz to the “kapos” who shoveled the bodies out of the gas chambers and pulled gold teeth from their dead heads to the bakers who baked bread for the officers’ mess were involved and responsible. At exactly what point, he asks, should someone have refused to obey orders? If the soldier who shot Jews in Ukrainian forests should have refused, why shouldn’t the driver of the truck who transported them to the pre-dug trenches in which they would be buried have refused? And what about the gas station attendant who put gas in the truck? And what about the mechanic who fixed the truck? And what about….?

Then Aue claims to the readers (paraphrasing) “You would have done the same as we did under similar circumstances so don’t get all self-righteous.” It’s a pretty powerful argument. I can’t begin to do justice to it here, but Aue goes into great detail explaining the whys and wherefores of the German invasions of Poland and Russia and the Ukraine and why killing supposedly innocent civilians was necessary. He more than hints that America did much the same in Vietnam and that all modern wars, at least, include mass killings of civilians. The Germans’ methods were crude at first, he argues, but the circumstances made them necessary.

Of course, Littell, an American author, is not promoting Aue’s arguments; he’s simply letting us listen in on them to sense how sensible they seem to someone on that side of the conflict.

Then the historical action begins (after the Introduction) and gets quite graphic in descriptions of the SS killings of civilians, especially Jews, in Poland, Russia and the Ukraine. Much of the dialogue is between SS officers and officers of the regular German army discussing why the killings are necessary and justified.

At one point Aue, who grew up Lutheran but attended a Catholic boarding school, reflects on Germany’s imperialistic conquests of other countries. The ultimate reason for it was Germany’s desperate need for “Lebensraum”—”space to live.” Germany was over crowded and lacking in many of the natural resources to make life good for Germans. There were vast open spaces to the east. Germany needed that space and the natural resources there. So they simply took it in order to survive and flourish as a people. (He could have said, but didn’t, just like Americans took North America from the Native Americans.) Their original intention, he says, was to push the inhabitants of those needed lands further to the east—beyond the Ural Mountains and into Siberia which was largely uninhabited.

“Was that fair?” Aue asks? Here’s his answer:

“So long as we had the strength and the power, yes, since as far as justice is concerned, there is no absolute authority, and each people defines its own truth and justice. But if ever our strength weakened, if our power gave out, then we would have to endure the justice of others, terrible as it might be. And that too would be fair.” (p. 161)

Indeed. What “absolute authority” was Aue (or author Littell) thinking of? Surely God. In other words, so it seems to me, Littell, using the “voice” of his protagonist, is stating the obvious but not always admitted conclusion that must be drawn from atheism.

I have no reason to think Littell is a Christian. Nothing I have read about him indicates one way or the other. And the book is anything but a “Christian novel.” It overflows with vulgarities, profanities, sex, blood, almost gratuitous descriptions of executions including of children. I can only tolerate that because I’m convinced it’s realistic, true to what happened, and that we need to know about it in all its horrible details. Neither the violence nor the sex is in the least attractive or erotic. It’s repulsive and not for the faint of heart. But it well illustrates the depravity of humanity and the relativism that is the natural, logical outcome of atheism.

Uncategorized

Previous Post

June 26, 2014

How American Evangelical Christianity Has Changed...

Next Post

July 2, 2014 Deist John Toland Was Right! Even Religion Must Be Intelligible

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Against Liberal Theology Uncategorized

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

I wanted a vineyard so badly that my wife arranged the owner's death through false witnesses. Who am I?

Select your answer to see how you score.

David Ahab Jezebel Naboth